mepham high school football scandal
"He was laying in bed with a big butcher knife in his hand 'cause he was scared. College athletics are oftentimes not as glamorous as one would think. display: none; But then come the off-color jokes about broomsticks and pine cones from his friends. But the school district, which canceled the football season last fall, has now, after seeing the grand jury report, relieved the coaches of their teaching positions at Mepham. "We're not suggesting anything about injuries. Its all fun and games, saysMcDermott. Before the 68 varsity and junior-varsity players left the Long Island communities of Bellmore and Merrick to attend the weeklong camp in Preston Park, Pa., coaches warned the team that hazing would not be tolerated, and spelled out the edict in a note sent home to players' parents. "My son came forward, did something that he did not want to do. It's, like, they're monsters," says Patty. He was just frightened," says his father, Vinny. I went to summerschool with them. The lineman, he says,was always starting fights. It was supposed to be fun, and glorious. They had hoped that the three assailants (Phil Sofia, Ken Carney, and Tom Diasparra) would be tried as adults for the crimes. NEW! Sports in Mepham isvery big.. "They couldn't be further from the truth," says Cannestro. They also understand they will need to sacrifice time, energy, and their social life in order to achieve these goals. Research shows that 70% of kids drop out of sports for many reasons and not making the team is one. MaxPreps is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. 2022 Fall Boys Football New York: Long Island Division II. This story has been shared 140,209 times. Webuilt a very good tradition with our team, and we justwant to make sure that anyone who wants to fit in onthe team knows about the tradition.. Yet to place responsibilityon any adult, coach or parent, means at leastpartially acquitting the kids; to suggest that someoneshould have stopped them is to believe that they couldhave been stopped. In recent years, the Pirates havent done aswell, losing roughly as many games as theyvewon, but the coach remains a local legendafather figure who welcomes players to his house forbarbecues with his teenage daughters in attendance.Its not surprising, then, that McElroy and theadministration would be the first stop on thewhos-to-blame tour. In the case of my four month concussion, there are residual mental and physical problems. Im theprincipal, he said, and Illdecide who can go on the trip. The lineman wasallowed to go to camp. mepham high school football scandal. I said, 'What's the matter?' "He was after my son morning, noon, and night. Mary is athird-generation Bellmoron. Her boy,Kyle, played varsity. I cried," says Carol, who asked her friend, Jim Rullo, to make a speech on her behalf. And he was very excited," recalls Patty. The coaches also showed 48 Hours a tape never before made public - one they say was recorded on the last day of camp. Students moved from one cabin to another without the coaches' knowing, the report says. The answer to all those questions is no.". Anyone can read what you share. I think hes adirtbag. We're going to all the sports stores. He said, 'Well, your son was just online and saying he can't take it anymore. Terms of Service apply. Because if these attacks are acceptedas hazing, then the school is responsible. says Cannestro. Was there anything that indicated they were injured or traumatized? Imagine your best friends making the school soccer team and you getting cut, because your not ready or there is no room. Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix have broken up after he allegedly cheated on her with Raquel Leviss. . "Something happened in between those practices every single time, to my son. By submitting your email, you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy and to receive email correspondence from us. And the report provides the most detailed glimpse yet into the weeklong football camp and the assaults that took place in two cabins last summer. They have criticized the coaches and school district for lax supervision, accusing Mepham officials of ignoring the long disciplinary record of one of the three attackers. Students attend a pep rally at Mepham High School in Bellmore, N.Y. ''People just want to move on,'' said one teenager, sucking on his cigarette. Everyone in the pews has heard how the father had beendevastated by the criminal charges his son was facing.Aggravated assault. Youve got some Janning to do! But it really happened., McElroys lawyer vehemently denies almost everyaspect of Bergers story. He's back home on Long Island. He had his little list. A perfect example would be a 13-year-old Georgia student riding a school bus received a wedgie during a school hazing incident so painful that his mother took him to the emergency room. !Effin this, effinthatyoure not coming on my team,youre done, youre done, youredone! And I started screaming at him.. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. A Pennsylvania judge imposed strong penalties yesterday on two teens who sexually abused younger players at a high school football camp sentencing one to a military-style boot camp and the other to a juvenile detention center. Despite the linemans threats, noone could have anticipated what happened atcamp, Caramore told parents in a speech, adding thatwhatever happened wasnt hazing:None of us in Bellmore-Merrick has used thatterm to define what is, in fact, a brutalcrime., The hazing-or-not debate is a key factor in the legalbattles to come. And my son said, 'They inserted a broomstick.'". High schools on Long Island have led a crackdown on rough-housing since the 2003 Mepham High School football training camp hazing scandal rocked the nation. Of course not. Also it brings down students self esteem. He says the coach started yelling.Hes like, No! Murdaugh defense team plans to appeal conviction But these parents say the risk to their children was greater. So, no., But, you know, says McDermott, ifthey wanted to do it? Vic and Kristina have done The Early Show and20/20. Treat others with the respect that you wouldlike to receive. Act appropriately. He was always in troubleat school, but not in football. "You didn't monitor him very carefully, obviously," says Patty of what happened to her 13-year-old son. No," says McElroy. The lineman was furious. Anyone can read what you share. (Almost as prevalent is the idea, notconfirmed by police, that the linemans fathercommitted suicide. . In the meantime, experts say violent hazings in high schools are becoming more frequent. How could we have known?". 18 - 35 L. 10/15/2022. If you do something wrong, youd better go home and pack your toothbrush because youll pay the consequences, he told the teen. In the end, they will be left unprepared for life. ''Despite these warnings and policies, the players all expected hazing to take place in one form or another at the camp,'' the report said. no.". Reichstein triedto stare the lineman down. As we mentioned earlier, the freshmans mother mentioned to coach McElroy the fact that the upperclassman was calling her son those insulting names. Mepham High School football head coach Anthony Cracco says LaSpina is the perfect role model for anyone who wants to just play because she worked hard and never got discouraged, adding there's a . Most students, the girls say, have not gotten caught up in the anger and recrimination that have divided their parents. This password will be used to sign into all, I Inherited Millions From My Mother, and Everyone Knows, Shania Twain Gives Rare Update on Her Ex-Husband and Ex-BFF, Journey Should Probably Go Their Separate Ways, 10 Things That Delighted Us Last Week: From Glass Jars to Guayabera Shirts. Theyre big football players who look andact like football players, says Jesse.Big and aggressive., The lineman was yelled at a lot,remembers another boy. But it wasn't until Jan. 11, after a possible sexual assault that occurred the previous week, that the high school's school resource officer, Kim Wood, was made aware of the "ongoing harassment behavior toward a student/member of the varsity football team . Now when they talk about Mepham, they use the wordssodomy and hazing. The Mepham-Garden City football game this week could be a juicy one. Your sonwoo hoo!Hes having fun. In 1994, Wesley Bergerwas a Mepham freshman, a football player with a shelfof trophiesMVP for the peewee league,fastest-runner and best-tackler awards. What LAppartement 4F Co-owner Ashley Coiffard Put on Her Wedding Registry. Kids have come to practice Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday,Thursday, and Friday to get better, while their academics are suffering. Oct. 20, 2003. The question has whirled aroundBellmore for weeks: Who would raise a child who woulddo this to another child? On 11/11, the Mepham varsity football team won their neutral playoff game against Long Beach (NY) by a score of 14-0. It devastated us. At first, shock and disbelief prevailed. We care about kids. Theres no way youcant play me. Sofia was sentenced to the boot camp and Carney to the detention center both in Pennsylvania. We love kids. Thepurported ringleader, according to police, was thelineman. MEPHAM COACHES BOOTED IN HAZING SCANDAL News MEPHAM COACHES BOOTED IN HAZING SCANDAL By Kieran Crowely November 6, 2003 5:00am Hugged by his team captain and cheered by supporters, Mepham. Gavin Roman broke the state record for most catches in a season during Holy Spirit's 63-34 rivalry win against Atlantic City in Absecon. He knows the mainkid, she says. Theres fury and finger-pointingandopportunityon all sides in this corner of LongIsland. Hugged by his team captain and cheered by supporters, Mepham HSs head football coach was fired last night and his four assistants got the boot, too. All five lost their coaching positions. "Yeah," says Cannestro. On a Friday morning in August, 60 kids were droppedoff for the bus ride to Pennsylvania. The three attackers were charged with involuntary deviate sexual intercourse after they sodomized the younger players with pine cones, golf balls and a broomstick in August at a football camp in Preston Park, Pa. This email will be used to sign into all New York sites. A captain is anextension of the coaching staff, he says,slipping into present tense to talk about his team.What the coaches dont control, thecaptains control. Also, sleep-away sports camps will no longer be authorized by the school district, Billig said. The parishioners sing Make Me aChannel of Your Peace. And then the younglineman, who charged onto the varsity squad hissophomore year at W.C. Mepham High SchoolHomeof the Piratesis in tears. The boy, wearing a regulation backward baseball cap,is standing at the schools west entrance. On September 17, the Bellmore-Merrick Central HighSchool District Board of Education canceledMepham's football season. The Bellmore-Merrick school boards decision not to rehire the coaches next year has taken a stake and driven it right through the heart of the community again, said head coach Kevin McElroy. Trending News My sonthinks its just a bad thing that went too far,too fast., Andy mentions what some people are sayingthatwhat happened at camp was part of a pattern of hazingat Mepham. Says one Mepham parent, Werealways in competition with the upper class., The kids on Kennedys football team know theMepham team, and theyre a little afraid of someof them. The sexual assaults that occurred last summer among members of a Long Island high school football team sprang from old traditions of violent hazing that coaches and school officials could not curb, according to a report handed up yesterday by a Pennsylvania grand jury. These individuals hope to be part of something special, whether its achieving individual goals or team goals. Some tryouts are not far by any means, in which the coaches pick from not the skill but by the way they know the student. Does heknow this for sure? But the victims told their parents they were screaming at the top of their lungs. A day later, the threeboys were suspended, and a student demonstrationerupted behind the schoolto the delight of theTV crews camped out there. Clutching their schoolbooks in their arms, Allie and Sarah said they actually felt tremendous pride in their school these days. Our community is being blamed. Full speed," says McElroy. The grand jury says the five coaches who supervised the team were ''more concerned with being coaches of a football team than interested in the well-being of the players as students.'' Everything Everywhere All at Once has won in every category they were nominated for. For Carol's son, it doesn't end. McElroy hadnothing to do with this kid, Joe Rosenthalsays. Both told stories of defending their school when they were teased by students outside the district and cited the ''Mepham Pride'' buttons that they and many classmates have taken to wearing. Other players laughed, the report said. He strokes his sisters hair withone hand and slides an arm around his brothersshoulders. When I was in ninth grade, says Lohman,my father died and my mother wanted to move toFlorida. Here's why food advocates are worried they cant afford it. All rights reserved. McElroy was practically a secondfather to Zereoue when the running back moved to ahome for wayward boys in Bellmorearriving, toMephams good fortune, at the start of hishigh-school career. "The kid who just made the tackle," says Cannestro, identifying one of the players on the tape. It has been 11 years since three football players, ages 15 to 17, from Mepham High School in Bellmore, New York, were criminally charged with sodomizing teammates during a preseason. In my opinion, a good education is so very important for our countrys youth, especially the athletes. How a tragic boating crash is connected to the family of Alex Murdaugh Students should not have to tryout for school sports. The coaches are suing to get their jobs back. School administrators, however, let him get on the bus anyway. College football players should get paid to play because these players put themselves at risk for injury, college football is a job, not p.e, and it will help players adjust to college socially and economically. Student athletes are not getting the opportunity to play multiple sports during the year, because they are expected to spelize in one sport and focus on it year round, leaving no opportunity to play other sports or do other activities. "These boys were like 6 feet 2 inches and 6 feet 4 inches, and roughly 250 lbs. If such a policy had been in place, one of the attackers would not have been allowed at the camp, the report says. "He was screaming. Including dishwasher-safe Japanese porcelain, two sets of French-made knives, and a sleek kettle. McElroy says district policy discourages it: "To put a coach in the room, you're putting the coach or the adult right now at incredible risk of sexual charges.". ), I knew all those kids, saysanother boy, a JV player. The problem was with thekidsand with the parents who brought them upthat way., Sothe parents. Stats are entered by the coach or designated team statistician in the admin. At 1:21 p.m. last Friday, the Mepham High School football and cheerleading squads should have rushed onto Mepham's field for a The boy was a member of the 2007 Charlton County High School junior varsity golf team. With FamousAmos on the squad, the team made the county playoffsall four years. Where does it end?". What Made Maddy Run by Kate Fagan shows just that. They speak ofbroomsticks, pinecones, and golf balls. Parents are paying up on school meals again. Were doing this so they donthave to., In July, when Reichsteins son, an incomingfreshman, showed up for football practice, a junior onthe teamthe linemanstarted calling himand some of the other boys pussy,faggot, and cocksucker.Reichstein went to McElroy. There's coaches. } Kids and adults are then forced to take a side on the issue for the good of the school and the safety of the children. A football captain begged for the season to be reinstated, and his pleas were met with thunderous applause. That washazing! display: none; At Mepham High School on Long Island, the entire football season was canceled after players admitted to sadistically hazing fellow teammates. Instead, they were treated as juveniles. Tryouts are the worst thing about sports, they bring nothing but more stress to your plate. Or as David Woycik, who represents another victim,puts it: Theres bound to be a movie madeabout this., This is not what Isigned on for when I tried to do the rightthing, says Vic Reichstein. "He [my son] called several times. Signup for our newsletter to get notified about our next ride. When several parents received threatening letters after speaking out about the incident, emotions ratcheted higher. Dominick Novello #2, Mepham quarterback, throws a pass during a rain-filled Nassau County football Conference II semifinal against Long Beach at Shuart Stadium on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022. Thanks for contacting us. Children have strived for years to make their parents, teachers and coaches proud of them. Into the locker! ''There's no question that they knew hazing had gone on for years, and they allowed it to go on,'' said Robert Kelly, a lawyer for two of the victims. In practice, theyd put meon the B squad and Id tear up the Asquad. He says he stayed on the team for twoyears but was allowed on the field only once,returning a kickoff 50 yards. The emotional impact on him is unbelievable," adds Carol. Now even they, however, have grown weary, wishing for a return to their old life. Jason Statham and Aubrey Plaza do not seem like a match made in action-comedy-chemistry heaven, but it somehow works. Due to the amount of padding they have to wear, football players can easily disguise their size therefore keeping them from receiving scrutiny from the public. Go ahead. Afew miles awaysouth of Sunrise Highway, down bythe blue water of East BayBMWs and Lexuses fillthe lot at the rival high school, John F. Kennedy.This was Amy Fishers high schoolthe richschool. A minivan with two others whizzes by, music blaring. A day later, the three alleged victims are stillhaving broomsticks thrown at them from cars in theparking lot. PARLIN, N.J. - The investigation at a New Jersey prep football powerhouse that has led to sex crime charges against seven teens prompted an almost unheard-of . Michelle Yeoh Promises No Swearing, Only Tears During Best Lead Performance Win. } At last nights meeting, one player called the coaches caring role models, and team captain Dan Cosenza hugged McElroy. Touring the world with friends one mile and pub at a time; ut austin undergraduate majors Newsletter . Rullo, now a community activist for change in his school district, says he received numerous letters and phone calls, including one that said that he and his family would die. They hit his headon the porcelain and he got a concussion. That blond buzzcut, the baby face, the meager beginnings of agoateehes only 16, too young to beburying his father. Were happy as can be, said Carol, an aunt of one of the victims. Subscriber Exclusive. My sons not. On Bellmore Avenue, themain drag in town, a mile or so east of Mepham,Docs Pub serves as an unofficial class-reunionspace. Nothing.". Anotherparent, Jim Rullo, delivers a prepared statement onbehalf of the victims families. I want to thank my assistant coach who is the baseball expert. That hasnt satisfied parents whocomplain about the lost scholarships, the deflatedhomecoming celebration, and the fund-raisers for othersports, all of which depend on football and are nowruined, theyre saying, because of a couple ofmessed-up kids. The father died on October 5a daybefore news broke that the lineman may be tried as anadult for some 26 felonies stemming from events thattook place over several late nights in August atMephams football-training camp in Wayne County,Pennsylvania. For me, this challenge helped me develop as a person than will work harder and strive for the best in my academics. Wesley?Wesley was a nasty rat bastard! What about, say, having your head flushed in a toilet? A problem arises though once try outs are over and the team is announced.